Save Handmade Toys

I am very concerned about increasing the safety standards of toys and other items made in China or other places, and I support banning toxins like phthalates and lead from these items. But congress recently passed the ill-conceived Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which goes into effect in February and will absolutely destroy the small toy manufacturers, independent artisans, and crafters who have already earned the public trust. The innocent small businesses who have always acted responsibly will now be punished due to the reckless acts of the large corporate toy manufacturers.

This act will affect the work-at-home moms who sew handmade waldorf dolls, the guy who builds handmade wooden trucks in this garage, the wood workers who carve waldorf play clips, and all of the small businesses who sell their products.

These entrepreneurs won't be able to sell their wonderful toys without investing thousands of dollars into third-party testing and labeling, just to prove that toys that never had a single toxic chemical in them still don't have a single toxic chemical in them.

I'm sure this act made sense from a desk in Washington, but the actual result punishes the small business owners who have always had the best interest of the children in mind and eliminates these competitors so the guilty large corporations can sell their slightly less toxic toys to our children.

This is a very important issue for all natural parents, waldorf parents, and anyone else who likes to see the smiles on children's faces. This act is a step into the Wal-Mart only society which kills the individual business owners and actually rewards the guilty.

Please help this important cause:

-Send an email directly to the CPSC or contact chairperson Nancy Nord at 301-504-7923

-Join the CPSIA Facebook Group

-Write your Congress Person and Senator with this sample letter